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Wednesday, June 7, 2017

Insecure Writer’s Support Group (June)

The first Wednesday of every month is officially Insecure Writer’s Support Group day. On this day we post about our thoughts, our doubts, and the fears we have conquered. We discuss our struggles and triumphs, and offer a word of encouragement for others who are struggling.

Every post opens with a question (a blogging prompt, if you will), and this month's is: Did you ever say “I quit”? If so, what happened to make you come back to writing?

While I have never quit writing, I have taken prolonged breaks to explore different styles, mediums, and genres. Even when things are going well, I think we all need variety to keep us engaged, and writing other things (especially where you have challenged yourself) can help to refine your craft. Even when I was at my most discouraged, with my novel receiving one rejection letter after another, I was always writing something else.

Last month was absolutely fantastic for me, with the release of an anthology that I was delighted to be a part of, and the pre-order release of my kinky pulp adventure tale, which marks a bit step forward for me as I opened myself up to some beta-readers and relinquished a little creative control to a professional cover artist. Both were great experiences, and they are motivating me to tackle the rewrite of my novel for submission to a few markets that I think (hope?) will respond favorably.

Every now and again I think about writing an ebook for Amazon or something, but figure I will get 300 words in and the ADD or ADHD will rear its ugly head, which is why I think captions are the best use of my 'talent'. Maybe someday, I'll surprise someone with a 2k word TG story!

You've certainly been productive in the review department, Sally. Congratulations on the releases!

As to whether I ever want to say "I quit...", I feel tempted every time I do my taxes and see how little I made as an author over the past year. However, I can't quit...it would be like ripping out a huge part of myself and tossing it in the trash.

Lately I've been saying, "Screw the market, I'm going to write what I feel like." So far that has resulted in one very dark and kinky paranormal story, and one ridiculously light-hearted smut fest in which everyone gets laid by everyone else.